Special Children are the Gifts of the God & Parents are required to pay special Attention for the well being of these Special Children. These Children need more & better care than the Normal Children & Parents must undertake flexible & suitable financial planning for (1) Treatments & Periodical Medical Check ups and (2) Future well being & Livelihood , so that They live well even after the Departure of the Parents. Few measures are being suggested which The Parents may like to adopt for the Financial Security of their special Child :-
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Form a Trust in the name of the Child :- A trust may be formed in the name of the Child viz “ Sankalp Satyam Welfare Trust” or “Sankalp Satyam Trust “. At least two trustees must be appointed who will look after the Interest of the Child after Parent’s Death. Two Trustees are being proposed because if one Trustee is not available due to any reason , the Second Trustee may take care. A Bank Account must be opened in the name of the Trust with the signatures of Both the Trustees . It would be desirable that Parents dispose off some of their properties in their life time & deposit the money in the Bank Account of the Trust. Alternatively, Parents may make a Will & define clearly as to what all Assets Will be given to the Child and who will be the Executor of the Will. Any Income generated out of the Asset allocated to the Child will be Credited into his Trust Account & then withdrawn from the Account need based for the Livelihood / Welfare of the Child.
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INSURANCE COVER FOR THE CHILD :- Parents must look out for Certain Health Insurance Plan for Special Children , so that the Medical Treatment needs for such children may be met. Presently there is a paucity for such Mediclaim Scheme in India . No Insurance Company is willing to provide Insurance Cover to these Special Children . Under Such Circumstances, it becomes the Duty & Responsibility of The Central Government & State Governments to provide such Social Security Cover. Parents are suggested to file PIL Petitions in the Court but before that , they must sensitise the Government by writing Letters to :-
Shri Thawar Chand Gahlot
H’ble Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment
Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment
Shastri Bhawan , C – Wing
Dr Rajendra Prasad Marg, New Delhi – 110011.
The Ministry has an Annual Budget of Rs.6908 Crores & they can provide Medical Insurance Cover to these Special Children without Parent’s Contribution also. But the Ministry may also formulate a Policy to be implemented by Insurance Companies for Health Insurance of Special Children at a reasonable Premium , which must include Domiciliary Treatment also.
Investment by the Younger Parents in an Annuity Insurance Plan will also be a better idea , so that the Child gets Payment after the Retirement or Death of the Parents. Parents may take a Life Cover Plan also depending upon their capabilities to pay the Premium.
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Budget for Different Stages of Child’s Life :- As soon as the Parents discover that their Child is born with certain Permanent Disability , they must draw up a Budget for the different stages of his life & start saving accordingly. First of all they should plan for a House where the Child would live for his / her whole life. Secondly, there must be an allocation for Child’s Treatment / Regular Medical Check ups in the Family’s Monthly Budget. Thirdly, the Financial Planning for the Child’s education must be done because the Education expenses of Special Children are much higher that the Normal Children. They need several types of Physical & Vocational Education besides the normal Classroom teachings. Besides their need for Sports , Outings & Entertainment is higher than Normal Children. Fourthly, Parents may start a SIP ( Systematic Investment Plan ) for Different Maturity Periods ( Tenures ) as per their saving capabilities . SIPs may be started from an amount as low as Rs.500.00 per month . An SIP of Rs.10,000.00 per month for 36 months yields Rs.4,56,000.00 approximately after 36 months.
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Emergency Fund For the Child :- People all over save money for the rainy days. A Special Emergency Fund must be created for Special Children for meeting any extra ordinary expenditure as & when such eventuality crops up. Such emergency fund must be kept in Savings Account , so that it could be easily withdrawn anytime without any hassles.
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Planning for Skill Development :- Special Children must be provided certain skills of their liking & one which they enjoy doing . Vocational Trainings for making Flower Bouquets , Photography , Bakery Products , Chocolates & other Eatables like Fruit salads or Popcorns , Paintings , Dancing & Music , Screen Printing , Photostat , Billing , Yoga , Gift Packing etc etc may be given to these Children so that They can pursue a Career in their life firstly to keep them engaged & secondly , to provide them some earning ability. Parents must plan for investing some money for making their Children skilled.
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Savings for Tours & Entertainments :- These Children must be taken to the Parks for Identifications of Trees & Flowers , to Zoo for Identification of Animals , to Sports Grounds for familiarisation with different types of Sports and Games , to Shopping Malls & Shops where they should be told to buy things, to Restaurants and told to order food of their choice, Disney Land & other Fun Parks for Entertainment. Thus, Parents will be required to make provisions in their Monthly Budgets.
Last but not the least, those Special Children who have learnt Reading & writing – a Bank account must be opened in their name & they should be taught how to read the Pass Book , How to write cheque for taking out money from the Bank and how to deposit cash in their own Account. It would enable them to run their own Business.
Written by – Capt Deepak Prasoon